Post by The Admin Account on May 26, 2009 0:46:45 GMT -5
If anything has been established during his tenure as the Pittsburgh Penguins GM, Hockeyfan101 will NOT stand for any form of mediocrity in his franchise. Tonight, that statement has never been more true.
John Tortorella, who since his hiring guided the Pens' to two Presidents' Trophy wins and an Eastern Conference final appearance, was relieved of his coaching duties this evening along with assistants Mike Yeo and Andre Savard. The Penguins' season has definitely not gone to form thus far, with an average 8-9-1 record and measly total of 17 points.
"With each passing day, I continued to lose faith in John's ability to guide this team to the promised land. With our miserable start to the season, it became brutally obvious that he had lost control of the room, and something needed to be done."
Hockeyfan101 also announced that he had been conducting a covert search for a new Coach since last season's first round exit at the hands of the eventual Stanley Cup Champion New York Islanders.
"Preparedness is everything in this business, and sure enough, so far this season, our heads are buried so far up our asses that we can't do a damn thing out there. This group's potential for greatness is through the roof, and we can't even muster a .500 record. It is time for a new face behind the bench to lead us to glory."
With that, it was announced that Alain Vigneault, whose last coaching stint came in 2007-08 for the Vancouver Canucks before being axed by GM TJHaskell, had been hired to a two-year deal to replace Tortorella behind the Pens' bench. Hockeyfan101 also announced that at the personal request of Vigneault, Rick Bowness (a former Assistant Coach of Vigneault's in Vancouver) was hired as an assistant coach, along with former Red Wings and Bruins bench boss Dave Lewis.
"I am truly honoured and excited to have been given this opportunity with such a respected organization." Vigneault, grinning from ear to ear, stated. "This team has the pieces and the know-how to accomplish some great things, and I can't wait to get to work with Rick and Dave to get going on bringing this team back to supremacy."
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Alain Vigneault, GM Hockeyfan101, Rick Bowness and Dave Lewis will now take questions from the media.